I Quit My Job For This – Lessons Not Learned

One year ago, I quit my job as a field archaeologist to board the self-publishing bandwagon and pursue my dream of writing stories.

So much has happened in the past year that I can hardly believe it’s only been twelve months since I took the plunge.  March 25th, 2013 saw the release of The Fallen Odyssey, an epic fantasy novel and the self-published debut of C.B. McCullough (that’s me, ya dummies).  June 28th, I released my second self-published title, a science fiction/mystery novella entitled The Night Also Rises.  And after months of feverish work, I somehow managed to release The Fallen Aeneid, the sequel to The Fallen Odyssey, exactly one year after its predecessor: March 25th, 2014.

Now, this is the point where a person like me is supposed to list all of the lessons he or she has learned on their “journey”.  This is where I tell you what I did right, what I did wrong, the goals I’ve met, the places where I’ve fallen short, and in general, my all-encompassing takeaway from the whole process thus far.

But today, this blog isn’t about me.  It’s about you.

It’s about you, reader.  Thank you for skimming through my often pointless, often self-serving blog.  Thank you—those of you who have—for reading my books from your Kindles, your computers, or your paperback copies, in your hands.

It’s about you, friends and family.  I can’t really explain why, but whether you read one of my books and loved it, read one of my books and hated it, or read one of my books and were indifferent, it hardly even matters.   Just the idea of you reading it, no matter what you thought of it, brings a smile to my dumb face.  Thank you.

And, most importantly, it’s about you, Vanessa McCullough.  I may have done the work, but you’re the one who made this all possible.  You’re the one who gave me the courage to strike out on my own and give this thing my best possible effort.  You’re the one who reminds me, in the moments when I feel like I’m fooling myself about this crazy idea of writing for a living, that I can’t give up.  You’re the one who believes in me when I don’t.  You are my inspiration.  Thank you.

Clearly I didn’t learn any lessons over the past year.  Clearly, I’m still the head-in-the-clouds dreamer I was when I started this—same as I was the first time I ever invented an idea and thought, “I wonder what happens next.”

So thanks, everybody.  I hope you’ll continue to join me on my adventures.  Now, there’s only one question left to answer…

What happens next?

– C.B.